With you, for you, Always…

Nope, it’s not a Bollywood movie title (I still haven’t been, but it’s on the list !).. it’s the slogan of the Police in Delhi… I don’t know about you, but I feel so much safer now (and warm and fuzzy inside!)

Mind you, in the area I’ve moved in, a lot of the private security guards (more on living in a bit) have got their own shotguns... I wonder what their moto is? :O)

Ok, apologies for the lack of update, I don’t have internet yet at home (and NO idea how to go about it I have to say !) and work is pretty intense (on that one, the ethic here is pretty impressive)… so I haven’t really had time to sit down and write anything.

Anyway, since last time, I’ve been able to do some tourism, found a place to live, moved in (I’m sharing it with a lizard, it moved in this morning, behind the Air Con…), had a close encounter with the DB (Delhi Belly), some kind of religious revelation and started work…

Oh and to make sure everybody is on the same level, it’s 31c, blue sky, EVERY DAY… the temperatures will drop to 15 (daytime) in January/February, but it won’t rain until June… MUHAHAHAHA

And, for some reason, it’s near impossible to burn from the sun here, methinks it’s the pollution that ‘protects’ you… Talking about pollution, it’s pretty impressive (and scary)… the visibility level is pretty low.. there’s a constant ‘haze’ which means that you can only see a few 100 meters before its gets a slightly difficult… and to think I’m breathing that all the time !!

Anyway, back to moi !

I have now moved into a large studio flat (40 square meter) in GK1… One of the posher areas of Delhi (I didn’t think much of it until I saw a poor area of delhi, now I understand the difference ! The flat is on the top floor, so will get insanely hot in summer (45c minimum for 2 months !)… but ihave TWO Air cons, so hopefully enough to survive… My rent includes the maid, who comes and clean the place, does my washing AND my washing up EVERY day for 7 quid a month…. !! I LOVE IT! I even have someone to iron my clothes (2p an item)…

It’s quite insane here, people are cheaper than things (the satellite tv is costing me 12 quid a month (with 2 bbc channels (hurray !)).. water is the same as the maid… A personal driver (which I probably won’t get) is 50 quid or so a month (and they are TOTALLY at your beck and call.. anytime of day or night, sleeping in the car if they have to…

I moved in on Tuesday (after spending 3 hours with customs to let my stuff through (they were going to charge me 100 quid for it, but a ‘friendly gesture’ of 12 quid was enough for them to look the other way……….. and just about finished getting things together (major achievement of the week end, getting drinking water delivered… small steps for some, BIG for me)…

The weirdest thing for me here is that the tap water is not drinkable, which is fine in itself, but what about the dishes you wash with it ???? Still not sure, but as I haven’t died so far… It must be ok…

Moving in my own flat has also made me face the fact that I know NOTHING about Indian cooking and when you go and do your shopping, most of the stuff is obviously for curry/Indian stuff… which I have no idea how to use… so I’ve been having pasta A LOT lately :O)… BUT, don’t worry, I bought a recipe book yesterday so be ready for some amazing butter chicken very soon… Talking about meat… I think I’m turning slightly vegetarian when at home… you should see what the ‘butcher’ looks like… I’m not ready yet to eat anything from there… The meat is piled up on shelves, which seem refrigerated (there’s ice on them !)… but in the open air… it looks clean, well compared to the streets and most other shops here… but it ain’t Sainsbury… so I’ll stick to paneer for now (the cheese they use for cooking !)

Another odd thing, it’s actually quite difficult to buy booze outside of bars/restaurants… Only offies can sell it and they tend to be hidden, so well in face that I still haven’t found one near me ! People drink when they go out but not during the day or at home it seems.. I’m going to have to unlearn being an alcoholic..pfffffffffffffffffffff !!

This week I’m getting the Internet sorted so you should get more news and photos soon… Also finding my socks (I put them ‘to the wash’ this morning (dump them under the sink for the maid to scrub them… I would be a perfect Scarlet O’Hara I think, tough yet compassionate with the staff !), most of the rest of my washing is here, folded on my table.. bar my socks !?!?!?!?!????!?!

On the tourist side, I’ve done quite a bit too… main highlight? Well, I’ve seen my first lepers and malformed people.. as well as extremely poor 5 year old kid and people literally living on top of a pile of rubbish… Will put the photos asap !!

Ok, I did see all these people, I of course didn’t take photos of them… I knew it was like that here.. still.. it doesn’t really prepare you….. and you see it again and again and again…

I saw most of this in Old Delhi (which is in the centre of the town)… Gosh, I’m glad Delhi isn’t like that anymore, I would NEVER have lasted more than a couple of weeks… Congested, noisy, very smelly (I mean a stench)… imagine (for those we know) a mix of Hanoi and the Chinese district in Bangkok… MAD… and beggars and dirt, and rotting things… EVERYWHERE, all the time… just intense… (and the odd thing is… this part of delhi is very well known for its street food….! And I have to admit, once you get ‘used’ to the smell, some of the stuff looked quite tasty… )

Why go there? Well, that’s where the big sites are, namely the Red Fort and the biggest mosque in India, Jama Masjid.

The Red Fort was the home of the guy who built the Taj Mahal and is perfect example of Moghul architecture… The brits destroyed a part of it to build some ugly Victorian building to house their government (thanks the brits!)…. The fort is huge, it’s perimeter is about 2km… Entirely in red bricks… The throne room (which is actually outside and open) is in white marble with delicate red flowers in inlay… Impressive and very beautiful

The mosque can hold 20,000 people for big celebrations and faces the fort… It’s again in the Mogul style… Have a look at the photos (when they are up !).

I basically spent a couple of days in Old Delhi, being careful not to eat anything potentially dodgy… Still, the next day.. well… I spare you the details (you know, noise, smell etc…) but let’s just say I felt quite rough and even though it was only going one way.. I didn’t feel 100%... Not sure if it counts as DB tho… I wasn’t puking!! J

Anyway, I also went to my first visit to a Gurdwara, the place of worship of the Sikh religion… My, I think I might convert… Basically the place is opened to anyone who wants to go (lots of Hindus go there too), as long as you respect the way it works (removing shoes and socks, cleansing hands and face, covering your hair, not talking once inside)… A Gurdwara is a place of personal retreat where you meditate whilst listening to 3 ‘priests’ (no idea what they are called) who chant their holy book (which is basically a poem of a 1000 pages) while playing some instruments I’ve never seen before… It’s mesmerising and very soothing.. We stayed there half an hour, just relaxing and being transported by their voices…

I liked it so much that we went again today (Sunday), to one of the bigger ones in Delhi... Old place, with a ‘lake’ full of fish where you can bathe to purify yourself… Most women were in colourful sarees and Sikh men with their turban… Loved it..

And it gets better, when you leave the place, you are given a ‘Gift’ from god to eat, some kind of sweet flour thing… and it’s SCRUMMY… !

Ok, I’ve gone on for long enough, so will stop now… Apologies to everyone if I havne’t responded to emails/facebooks… should hopefully get sorted this week…

Highlight of next week ? My first visit to the only gay night in delhi, once a week, on a Tuesday.. I’m thinking Loughborough gay nites, in worse… should be fun :O)

Anyway, give me news… babies, weddings, divorce, promotions.. ANYTHING!!

Lots of bisous, love and hugs !!